Question

Posted by: Natasha | 2011/03/02

Early menopause

I am 36 and have been diagnosed as being peri-menopausal. I have night sweats and if I don''t have those, I am so hot that I sleep with my sliding door open for cool air. That is of course when I sleep. My hot flushes strike at the worst of times, the last when I was in the queue at Woolies. I have my own built-in shower. Sweat literally runs of me and I leave semi-lakes of sweat in my wake. My menstrual cycle is no longer a cycle, its a full on race, No period vs late period vs early period vs 1 period a week vs HEAVY period and painful period. My GP put me back on the pill (Dianne) to try and regulate my periods and clear up my spotty skin as my teenage son and I are sharing acne creams. We stand side by side in the bathroom in the morning fighting over the Clearasil whilst I deal with my daughter having nervous breakdowns because she has not grown boobs yet. Then I have a hot flush whilst taking a cold shower. The pill definitely helped with me periods but my Dr Jekyll and Hyde state of mind is exhausting me and scaring off family and friends. The cat only comes home when the entire house is dark and everyone is alseep. I can''t decide on which personality to have for the day so I alter between the two, three or four times a day. The only thing both personalities have in common is crying because I can''t lose the weight I am gaining weekly, I am starved because I am down to 1 full meal a day. If I eat I gain weight if I don''t eat I gain weight. I don’ t have alcohol, chocolate, red meat, fizzy drinks, sweets, chips, pizza or pies. I am physically active as the dog, whom I used to like, became my responsibility when, its 2 original owners who cried for weeks for a puppy turned into 2 teens. I walk him at least once a day for an hour. I feel guilty for hoping he will run away and find himself a home somewhere else on a different continent. My husband will not even venture down sex avenue because I am like an angry BMW driver, stuck on the William Nicol and late for work. I will run you over, reverse over you and then pepper spray you if you even think of saying you are sorry. I have 0 interest in anything apart from an afternoon nap, which, when I wake up, turns me into Lilith the bride of Satan and both Jekyll and Hyde cower in fear for two hours. I have 2 teens, an incredible, amazing husband whom I love with all my heart, 3 dogs, 1 cat and everyone wants dinner by 6. This is after I had to do grade 8 maths and grade 7 Zulu homework, battle traffic, worked WITH my husband, made school lunches, fed everyone breakfast and dragged myself out of bed to at least wash my hair for the first time in three days. All jokes aside, my symptoms are having a negative impact on my life and I am exhausted. I am deeply afraid of osteoporosis but can’ t take too much calcium because I have a kidney disorder. My mom and gran both had a “ normal” menopause after 50. I know what is wrong with me but I don’ t know what to take to try and ease off the symptoms. I just want to be happy, pretty, thin and have sex with my husband.

Our expert says:

Firstly, if you are on Diane, you should not be having hot flushes due to menopause. The oestrogen in Diane should take these symptoms away. It is also unusual to have a menopausal hot flush in the shower. So, there may be other reasons for your symptoms, such as thyroid problems, or other rare endocrine problems. The easy way to check for menopause is to have a blood test for FSH and LH.(You would have to be off the Pill for this).The mood changes should also not be related to menopause if you are on Diane. It sounds like you have a busy and stressful life, and this may be the cause for your tiredness, lack of libido and mood changes. Why don't you see a psychologist to discuss this.

Best wishes

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Our users say:

Posted by: gynaedoc | 2011/03/03

Firstly, if you are on Diane, you should not be having hot flushes due to menopause. The oestrogen in Diane should take these symptoms away. It is also unusual to have a menopausal hot flush in the shower. So, there may be other reasons for your symptoms, such as thyroid problems, or other rare endocrine problems. The easy way to check for menopause is to have a blood test for FSH and LH.(You would have to be off the Pill for this).The mood changes should also not be related to menopause if you are on Diane. It sounds like you have a busy and stressful life, and this may be the cause for your tiredness, lack of libido and mood changes. Why don't you see a psychologist to discuss this.

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